Back on Track: 536 hands & +$89.95

Phew! Finally had a really good run. This is officially my most profitable day in poker, and goes a long way to making back some of the money I lost in my aggro-tilt-downswing. I was hitting sets like there was no tommorrow, had the nut flush 3 times (and got paid) and basically destroyed the felt. It feels good to be positive again! Restored alot of confidence. I think the change to my attitude helped alot. The session started badly with me dropping $10 on two table with TPTK like hands but instead of turning into the tilit monster I took a breat, put on some good tunes and returned to the tables. The tables I were playing at were literally my wetdream of tables, so many fish! YEA! Pretty pumped up now!

Some sets for you to ponder over. Not sure about calling the min-3bet with 7s but I decided It was still cheap enough for a mine. Didnt catch the other big hands, I was in the grooooove!

The Recovery

Well ive not played poker at all today, and am not going to play at all tommorrow either. After losing it yesterday I managed to win back a buy in after cashing in 2/3 of those 210 fpps buy ins so Im back over $700 which was my threshold for 25nl. Im taking a couple days to reflect over that downswing, as ive never had one as bad as that and it really fucked me up. Seriously considered quitting for a while. Either way I dont think I am anymore, just gotta get back on the saddle. Im thinking about getting a months subsription to stox and looking at some 25nl vids (im going to pm some CC guys and ask their opinion of the quality of the 25nl vids) and im thinking about asking ice if he wants to do a sweat session with me when ive got some more free time. Hopefully both these combined will set me back on the right road.

Wish me luck

Enough is Enough - Destroyed

Well so sums up the worst 24 hours of poker ive ever had. I mean I can handle dropping 8 buy ins over time but losing it over 24 hours has absolutley destroyed me. $200 is a lot of money for me, i mean ive just lost more then 1/5 of my entire BR. Literally this is a all time low for me. I know alot of you will say if you cant handle the swings dont play at the levels but fuck that. This isnt just a swing, this is utter annhilation. My whole months profits gone in the space of a day. What am i mean to do now... Im not playing 25nl with less then $700 in my cashier, and i really dont wont to play 10nl again its about as exciting as watching paint dry. Im absolutley gutted. Im seriously thinking about withdrawing $680 and starting again with $20. Ive never considered taking money out before, as my philosphys (sp?) been the more you put in, the more you get out, but now its a serious option. Ugh, I know I bitch and complain alot, but this takes the piss. What really irritates me is the people im losing to, im getting my chips in against 60/40s, 50/10s and consistantly losing. Set over set, trips vs FH, overpairs vs sets, just about every type of beat there is ive now had it. Im not even going link hands, I dont want to see them again.

I really dont know where to go from here.

Destroyed.

Mid-Month Update

Well its been a while since I wrote here so this is a quick update and explanation. The last month has been shit busy. I mean like, ive done fuck all for two months previous and now its all come back to bite me on the arse (only fair). I had to make my first trip up to my new house, start moving things there (its a 4 hour drive either way), change my module choices, register for uni, and do a crapboatload of other things too. Also this is my first house, well shared house, where im in charge of my own shit so ive been trying to make sure everythings sorted out first so i can have a quiet year without disasters. Due to this I had to drop out of the HU championship (sorru JD and Jurn!), I did send Jurn 5$ but we had the name wrong so ive now sent it again, hopefully itll get through this time! I also had to drop out of the Guys vs Girls challenge which really sucked (sorry Daks). All this dropping and flaking is making me more cautious about signing up to things I might not be able to fully commit to later. Anyway, apolagies to anyone who this effected!!

Anyway onto poker. I managed to play a couple hands at the start of the month, and quite a few the in this last week so im actually not TOO far behind my goals for hands played this month. The month started really bad, swinging like a pendulum and struggling to break even. I decided to take a break from FR and follow the CC train to 6max. Started at 10nl which im overrolled for and after 6k hands at 10nl I moved up to 25NL and have been running really well! Finally my big hands are being payed off, im catching donks left right and center, and in general everythings going great! This lead to a great moment for me, finally smashing through $800 which id be dithering with for like weeks! Im up to like $850 now, which still blows my mind as I think about two months ago when I deposited my $50 and started my cash game life.

NL25 6max: 6543 hands, $120.05, 18bb/100

Mid month graph:












Last 5 sessions, running hot (finally above ev first time this month!)!





So yea thats basically it, hopefully I can continue to run well at 25NL and hit $1000 before september ends. Ill try post some hands and shit soon!

I dunno

I dunno why I bother trying to move up to 25nl. So far ive enjoyed two sets over sets, one straight over set. One quads over set. Its not that im not hitting cards its that everyone either htis harder or folds. Im at a loss at what to do....

Last nights move to 10NL

After a simply awful start to yesterday (two FHs under FHs as you can see below) I decided to swallow my pride and take a step down. Not for financial reasons, I still had over 25 buy ins, but because I realised I wasnt playing to the best of my ability. I was starting to play a little desperate trying to win back lost money. So I moved down to 10NL for the night and LOVED it. I was able to play 6 tables again, something I missed. I realised that I could really crush 10NL without much idfficulty, and im not trying to sound cocky or boastful. I plugged in 1.8K hands over 3 hours, one of my biggest sessions this month, and finished up 4 buy ins, so nearly covering my loses from 25nl. I think im going to stick at 10NL today, and move back up to 25nl tommorrow as its a new month and I want to get silverstar status.

So anyway on to yesterdays sessions, I picked some hands you'll like and some you might not :)

Hand 1: KK runs into AA. Yes i shove PF after a limp-raise but im not folding KK PF at this level. I had an inkling this guy had the rockets but hed been playing a bit weird and had done the exact same think with AK so i didnt mind getting my chips in when I did. This didnt get to me though, I just let it sliiiiide.



Hand 2: Im not sure how people will take this hand. Yes I know limping OOP with K10s isnt a great move but there was reason behind the madness. Id noticed the villian who raised tends to raise when theres alot of deadmoney in the middle, and then was willing to bet all three streets, btu he wouldnt get in a raised pot. Basically I was trying to isolate him without raising as he'd yet to call one of my PF raises. It worked out magically.




Hand 3: Haha right i know that IceMonkey isnt going to like this hand! But this is why sometimes aslong as the right condidions are met, ill call a standard raise with a less then great hand (conditions being the inital raiser has a full stack adn tightish stats). I do this for a couple reasons. 1. Youll either win a big pot, or lose a small as you wont commit more chips unless you improve drastically. 2. You hand is REALLY disguised as so far youve only shown down premium hands. 3. Good for your image and metagame. Anyway heres an example of it working



Hand 4: Quads get payed off by a absolutle moron. Did he realise that any 4 or 2 beat him? This is a great example of how NOT to slowplay.



Hand 5: Finally im on the RIGHT side of a set over set. I decided to flat the flop as the boards so dry a raise would have scared everyone off. I shove turn fairly confident I would get at least one caller, but both come and in the end im sitting 400bb deep on that table. Nice!

What a joke

This is how i run latley. Everyday starts the same stupid fucking way. I lose a shitload then maybe manage to win back half of it before I lose another shit load. Maybe I should back to fucking 10nl...

Anyway heres how glorious today started, fun fun fun

25NL - The Comeback

Well despite my rant yesterday (I was obivously tiliting more than a three legged table)I never acttually moved down to 10NL. Even at my lowest point ~$640 I still had over 25 buy ins at 25NL. I suppose thats the benefits of being overrolled when you move up. So i decided to battle through this swing, and stick at 25NL, refusing to admit defeat. Ive noticed a pattern with my play, im MOST likley to lose a load of $$ within the first 10 mins of playing. I dont know if thats becasue I tend to play looser in those first 10min as im settling in, or if its just bad luck but as i started my session today within the first 10mins I had dropped 2 whole buy ins. One of them ill show below, the other was calling down TPTK on a 60/10 who turned a straight. I dont think I played either hand terribly.

Im still settling into 25nl, and i need to stop stacking light against people without full stacks. Ill stack a $15 stack light just because he doesnt buy in for hte whole amount and in weird some way that makes me think he just isnt a good player. Kinda a smallish leak I need to plug. Ive also GOTTA start using my stats more. Sometimes ill still make decisions without looking at a players stats or stack, for example c-betting a super short stack who has a 20% fold to cbet and is shoving ATC. I think its just the rush of the new limit getting to me. Im finally tightening up, but still throwing some wacky hands out there to keep my fishies guessing (an example below). Anyway im actually UP $30 at the end of 500 hand session, so i actually managed to win back my two stacks and then a third. Not bad, heres some highlights

Hand 1: The villian is this hand has been playing a bit wildish 30/20 so not a SLAG but definetly not your standard TAG. The guy who flats behind me is a total donk, 70/40 and was the reason i was at the table. He had shoved with 34s before so i shove my hand hoping to catch two fishies, only one calls and he has me crushed, ah well. I kinda forgot my own rule 'The limp-shove is ONLY aces or kings'.



Hand 2: Unwilling to let go of KK on a paired board against a medium stack. His stats were 36/4 so i dont think i was ever laying it down, he could easilyt have JJ-99, AK, AJ which i think hed olay the same




Hand 3: Now for some winning hands. This is a kinda crazy hand but so be it. The guy on my right is a CCer 'Insolitude' and is playing a standard TAG game. In flat his raise with suited gap connectors (lol) hoping to catch a nice disguised flop and stack. A LAG flats behinf me so three tot he flop. A decide to lead out on the flop repping AK, KQ ect and the LAG play min raised. I HATE min raises, and hed been playing back at me alot so i flat him. Turn comes, and im golden. Rest is history.



Hand 4: This was my big money maker. I pump up the limpers expecting to take it down but get called. I hit my ace on a great board and decide to just lead out. The guy who min-raises me is a standard TAG 20/15 ish so i 100% certain hes not holding something like A3 ect, so the only hands im scared of are AA and 33. Ofcourse im shoving this, he makes a bad call and i take a nice pot.




Thats about it, as always feedback is welcome on all hands ect. GL all!

Fuck this

Well im done with 25nl. I can win a single fucking hand. Everytime i raise with a hand good like AJ or KQ i get 3 then 4 bet. Everytime i fucking isolate a donkey on my table he'll draw out on me. Everytime I raise with a good hand like AA the table all immediatly fold. Im tired of this shit, ive dropped shit loads of buy ins, its just not fun or exciting. everytime i see my money in the pot i can pretty much garuntee that money is lost. Im going back to fucking 10nl

YES! I HELP ANOTHER SS STACK! RENAME ME 'SS-ATM' PLS

PokerStars Game #19962037916: Hold'em No Limit ($0.10/$0.25) - 2008/08/28 - 10:01:25 (ET)
Table 'Gemma III' 9-max Seat #5 is the button
Seat 2: Lonskar ($22.75 in chips)
Seat 3: sebixxx ($25 in chips)
Seat 5: mpeGroCkz ($4.90 in chips)
Seat 6: Jean serien ($29.10 in chips)
Seat 7: ajrobin1412 ($27.70 in chips)
Seat 8: yaz51 ($11.85 in chips)
Seat 9: plus5 ($6.40 in chips)
Jean serien: posts small blind $0.10
ajrobin1412: posts big blind $0.25
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to ajrobin1412 [Qs Qd]
yaz51: calls $0.25
plus5: folds
Lonskar: folds
sebixxx: folds
mpeGroCkz: raises $1 to $1.25
Jean serien: folds
ajrobin1412: raises $2.25 to $3.50
yaz51: folds
mpeGroCkz: raises $1.40 to $4.90 and is all-in
ajrobin1412: calls $1.40
*** FLOP *** [5h Ts 8d]
*** TURN *** [5h Ts 8d] [4s]
*** RIVER *** [5h Ts 8d 4s] [4h]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
ajrobin1412: shows [Qs Qd] (two pair, Queens and Fours)
mpeGroCkz: shows [As Ac] (two pair, Aces and Fours)
mpeGroCkz collected $9.65 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $10.15 | Rake $0.50
Board [5h Ts 8d 4s 4h]
Seat 2: Lonskar folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 3: sebixxx folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 5: mpeGroCkz (button) showed [As Ac] and won ($9.65) with two pair, Aces and Fours
Seat 6: Jean serien (small blind) folded before Flop
Seat 7: ajrobin1412 (big blind) showed [Qs Qd] and lost with two pair, Queens and Fours
Seat 8: yaz51 folded before Flop
Seat 9: plus5 folded before Flop (didn't bet)


YES!!! ANOTHER AA GETS FUCK ALL!

PokerStars Game #19962088884: Hold'em No Limit ($0.10/$0.25) - 2008/08/28 - 10:04:56 (ET)
Table 'Mabella' 9-max Seat #2 is the button
Seat 1: strdle_m0nqy ($15 in chips)
Seat 2: ajrobin1412 ($23.90 in chips)
Seat 3: k030101 ($29.85 in chips)
Seat 4: Virmos ($25.35 in chips)
Seat 5: asertivo ($20.65 in chips)
Seat 6: sebixxx ($22.55 in chips)
Seat 7: x-nine ($21.55 in chips)
Seat 8: dr_pero ($41.45 in chips)
Seat 9: Desgraciao ($4.90 in chips)
k030101: posts small blind $0.10
Virmos: posts big blind $0.25
strdle_m0nqy: posts big blind $0.25
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to ajrobin1412 [Ac Ah]
asertivo: folds
sebixxx: folds
x-nine: folds
dr_pero: folds
Desgraciao: folds
strdle_m0nqy: checks
ajrobin1412: raises $1.25 to $1.25
k030101: folds
Virmos: folds
strdle_m0nqy: folds
Uncalled bet ($1.25) returned to ajrobin1412
ajrobin1412 collected $0.85 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $0.85 | Rake $0
Seat 1: strdle_m0nqy folded before Flop
Seat 2: ajrobin1412 (button) collected ($0.85)
Seat 3: k030101 (small blind) folded before Flop
Seat 4: Virmos (big blind) folded before Flop
Seat 5: asertivo folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 6: sebixxx folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 7: x-nine folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 8: dr_pero folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 9: Desgraciao folded before Flop (didn't bet)

25NL - Downswing

Well obviously my first day at 25NL was a nice heater, alas I find that after a heater I always run into a cooler and that cooler came yesterday. I played like a total idiot. I knew i was playing like a complete spaz but I just couldnt stop myself. I was dropping buy ins like it was small change. Im utterly disgusted with my self. Needless to say I went on tilit, something ive not done in a LONG time. So the bee-all-and-end-all of it was I lost all my profit from the the first day. I know, just fucking awful. Im not qutie ready to review my play yet, as i know what i was doing, i was playing like a maniac post flop. I had VPIPs of 35+ on multiple tables, and i just kept shoving my money in. I dunno what it was, but i think the fact that i ran so well the first day made me feel like i could crush this limit without even trying. Obv not the case. So today ive had to REALLY slow down. Take myself back to my TAG game, and im slowly making back some of my loses. As IceMonkey said in a comment on my last post, if i just keep to my gameplan im sure that ill be able to make a nice profit at this limit. Just gotta cool it down, take my time. Im not going to be moving to 50NL tommorrow so theres no hurry!

Oh sorry i dont have any hands for you to laugh at, when im pissed i usually just close tables without getting the HHs. Let it be said though that ive seen better play at 2NL then what i was doing yesterday

The move to 25NL, serious profits!

Well ive been running pretty well for the second half of this month, and finally decided to take the plunge into 25NL yesterday with 27 buy ins, im such a BR nit. It went B-E-A-UTIFULLY. Everytime ive moved up in limits so far ive had a really poor run and dropped down, not this time! I think it was the combination of the confidence in my play and the large BR cushion I had built myself. As Sindri said in a post earlier im moving up much quicker then expected. Barley two months ago i deposited $50 onto PS, and now im brushing the $800 mark playing at stakes where AI pot represents my initial deposit. I can honestly say the reason ive managed to move up so quick is CC, without id probably still be scrounging around at 2NL thinking my 10-7 suited was a okay hand to call a 3bet.

Anyway onto some hands:

My first ever hand at 25NL could not have gone better!!!




Another stack, playing a bit LAGgy with raising OOP with SC's, but sometimes it pays off and this was one of those times:



Is A-high good enough? I dont think so....




Of course i didnt win everything. In fact this hand I played HORRIBLY. This was in the middle of my session and i think winning was getting to my head. I was feeling untouchable. The re-re-raise on the paired board is just awful. Ever heard of WA/WB Angus??? The river bet is even worse. I honestly wasnt concentrating at all as my sis had just come back from a years travelling and I literally just chatting to her, not really looking at the screen. Ah well, we live and learn. Laugh away!




So anyway all in all a very nice opening day at 25NL. I know im on a bit of a heater but even so I dont think 25NL presented that much trouble for me. 50NL in a week then??

I suck at blogging

Well I officially suck at da blog. Im pretty much not writing here for a while, when I feel i can be arsed to write again ill put the link back in my sig. Till then, expect to see me at 100NL FR in 2 months.!

Walking before running

Warning: Drunk post about ladders..

Well, this is a very sombre (and yet drunk) post. A thread called 'This is how i go broke' really got me thinking about my future in poker. This guys basically bitching about how hes always depositing, then losing his whole BR playing well over his head 'cuz i cant be bother with brmanagment'. I respnded basically telling him he was a idiot, and had no excuses for not winning, and it struck me that just over a month ago i WAS that guy. I lost a whole deposit on Party, and my FT account is crippled, all beacause i was a shite player. This then made me look at where i am now, and the improvment is vast. Dont read this wrong, im not saying im anywhere near a consistant and good player, i still consider my self firmly on 'Rung 1' of my poker ladder, but at least ive got off the floor now! Through CC and my own work ive actually managed to create a winning game. Now to be fair, its only a 2NL and 5NL atm, but my BR is actually growing (well not today..) which is almost scary in a way. It means that ive got to choose wether i want to continue learning and putting that extra effort in that the 'donk' poster refues to do and move up the levels, or sit 'content' where i am. Pretty much a no-brainer..

After these deep musings i had to reel myself in a little, i was ready to go get an account on stox, buy 50+ books and turn pro. Obviously not a realistic short-term goal. So then i started thinking about the phrase 'You have to learn to walk before you can run', and i realised it plays such a huge part in early poker players careers. Its hard after watching Rex take down yet another $2600 in tourney (thats his second plus a sunday warm up csah, congrats rex!) not to think 'well ill just satty into a big tourney like the 100K, take it down and bobs yours uncle!'. But these players started where we all start, at the bottom of their own ladders, and just because theyve gone up rungs in their ladder, doesnt mean we should skip rungs on ours. This is a drunk post, but what i think im trying to get at is that i finally realised today how 'long-term' poker really is. Who cares if i drop $20 today, when looking at the bigger picture that wont even be a blip on my graph.

Trun around

Well i haven written in a little under a week, but ive been really with jobs around the house. Parents house is being extended so im helping around with whatever i can do, at the moment mainly painting and decorating. Anyway, ive only been able to play about 3-4 hrs every afternoon, but ive been running really well. Getting PokerTracker again has just improved my game my leaps and bounds. Ive made $50 at the 2NL tables since last Teusday, which i think is pretty damn good. However my stats are worrying me, im obviously playing as a nit at this level, however thinking about this, ive decided that its probably the only way to make consistent profit at this level and the best way to seperate the donks from their FR winnings. Anyway this success has led to think about moving up levels. I posted on CC and got some excellant advice from Jagsti basically saying that everyones different and only I'll know when its time to move. I decided to stay at 2NL until ~$220, but last night a CC ring game started at 5NL, so i sat down with a full stack, and left an hour later +$25. I was catching some SICK cards, and some nice suckouts. I think im gonna carry on playing 5NL for a while, and if a drop down 3-buy ins ill drop back down and grind it out. These winnings have been supplemented with $25 PS kindly gave me for a successful collusion report, this just proves why PS is the best site on the web. Anyway this is my graph (theres a big spike at the end which is kinda hard to see but is the CC ring game):










Right, i though id include some hands from the CC session. Id include some 2NL hands, but its all ABC stuff and pretty dull.

Okay this hand was my big winner (sorry Freak), and i really tanked the turn-shove. The way i saw it, i was either WB or slightly ahead. I just couldnt figure a hand apart from AA or KK that would shove the turn that beat me, as i figured a hand like AhKh would flat call and slow play. I also though i was ahead of hands like Ah10x or Jh9x. Still not sure if it was the right long term call but it worked here:




The beautiful 7-2 game. Zach said i had the best hand either way :)



Any finally, a runner-runner to take some chips form Zach. I c-bet the flop, then checked behind on the turn as i figured i was behind something like AQ, JJ ect. Hit the runner-runner straight, and over bet the pot to try and rep 7-2 trying to buy the pot.

Phew, good news at last

Well its been a while since my last post,and this has mainly been due to a massive downswing pissing me off at the end of sessions and me just shutting down and going to bed. It started about a week and a half ago, and now (thank god) i seem to be past it. The turning point seemed to be the arrival of my new laptop! Its awesome, bigger screen, double the RAM and just soo much better then my desktop. It also meant i could re-install PT and get my HUD back. Anyway the downswing cost me a massive 30$, that might seem small, but at 2NL that represents most peoples entires BR. Luckily im more then rolled for it so it doesnt seem to have dented my armour at all and now im on a bit of a heater im managed to recover my losses

Fuck that. Just lost a buy in AA vs QQ rivered... HSIT

Still running like shit.

Well the shit-spew continues. I managed to actually recover my BR from the downswing two days ago, and today..blah. Im playing as i usually do, with the difference im buying in for the full amount and i cant win a hand. A good example: Flop the bottom end of a straight, so i throw in a big re-raise and get one called. The turn pairs the board, villian over bets the pot, i push and ofcourse he calls. Turns over top set, so im looking pretty good, until the river bringing him four of a kind... I wasnt even irritated, i just smile now. Then the wanker has the nevre to go 'new your were full of it, cant bluff a master'. I didnt even bother replying..just closed down that game. As well as that todya ive run top two pair into riverd set, and gone straight vs better straight. If that wasnt bad enough im not getting my good hands folded around to me, or only making ~10c of them... All my c-bets are now getting re-raised , and i cant remember the last time i hit a flop.. Ive been dealt so many PPs today, havent hit a SINGLE set. A chase flused and OESDs to no effect... i hope this shit ends soon, i cant breake the 150$ barrier.

Running like shite...

Well last night and today have been shit. Been playing for like 3hrs today and im down a good $10 at the 2NL tables. It seems to me i just cant win a hand for a significant amout. Ill pick up small pots here and there, then lose a stack for something like JJ vs 35 (and then had the guy thank me for the cash, what a fucking wanker, i said 'np, just keep calling my pf raises with 35 and ill soon have that back off you' absolute twerp. Ive been up against AA three times with JJ, QQ and AK. Had my aces cracked by JJ rivering a set, which was folled by 'YESS, i love donk money'. Im starting to fucking lose it, im down to playing two tables as im tired of having to rebuy.

DOOOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWWWWWWNNNNNNNNNNNSSSSSSSSSSWWWWWWWWWIIIIIIIINNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGG

Shit

Anoter good session

Well had another good session 4-tabling 2NL, left with a good 10$+ profit. The day started badly with me losing a couple buy-ins in situations i really didnt have to throw money away. Took a good long break, and came back that evening. That session also started badly with me throwing away half a stack on a silly river-hit. However the session turner around when i was on the winning side of a AA vs KK (sorry ice). From there the whole session turned around, got dealt QQ 4 times in 10 mins of 4 different tables, took more then a few stacks through set mining, and in one case quad mining. Not too many interesting hands, pretty standard play but ill show a couple:

My quads, i think i could have got more value on the turn if id bet but on the river i didnt think he was calling much more then a min rasie.



Second hand, standard set mine taking a stack of a straight chaser

First real stab at 5NL

Well i had a session of 2NL earlier today and i was still running well, playing good and left with 6$ profit after a hour (lost a big pot in the 3rd last hand). Decided it was time to have a lookey into 5NL, so i picked a table with a large plr/flop percentage and large average pot size. Straight away i noticed the action was alot faster, and apparantly looser. Seemed a very fishy table to me, so i started off very tight, and won a couple small pots. Then the fish swam away and the whole table started playing tight, i noticed this quickly (was only playing this table so i was pretty focused), and immediatley opened my range. I soon realised i could bully/out-play most of my opponent post flop. Anyway after ~40mins i got tired of poker and left, with a nice 4$ profit for the session.

Anyway some interesting hands.

Right this first one i know i didnt play particlary well but i wasnt going to lay down a open-ended straight flush (and royal) draw to anything less then a all-in. The limp in PF was weak, i was still playing v.passive and probably a little scared as i just moved up. The pot odds obv werent in my favour on the turn (i dont think, i reckon i had about 13-14 outs to win and some more to tie) and i know i got lucky on the river but still, a nice hand.



This second hand i played a bit dodgy, and got pretty lucky. The raise PF was as i was sure i could out play post-flop (winning was getting to my head i think and i was a little big for my boots). The calls on the flop and turn looked weak and as if we was chasing (obv the flush), so i figured id represent the K and on the river i was fairly certain he wasnt calling a signifcant bet. (BTW this wasnt 6-max, just come people had just sat out)

I dont want to leave 2NL

Hit my first $100

Well my BR is up to $100 on PS after 3 weeks of 2NL. Slow profit yes, but im still learning so much about cash ring games, and poker in general, that i feel its a massive milestone for me! Once i get up to $120 ill have a nosey into 5NL and see what its like, im hopeful its not too different from 2NL, just more money involved.



















The hand which finally broke the barrier (ive been up and down id been up and down the 90's for a couple hours)

A new month

Well its the start of a new month tommorrow so i thought id sum up June. On Full Tilt June has been a pretty shitty month to be honest. Came back form Uni at the start of the month with abt $40 in it. I really dont think FT is equipped for such a small BR, the smallest cash games are WAY out of my BR and the SNGs charge a ridculous rake. The $40 has shrivelled up to $20 now, and i dont really want to play with it. I hate losing money, and it would really piss me off lose that. Might just save it for CC events, tournies ect, not really decided.

On a lighter note i deposited into PS about half way though the month, as i realised they were pretty much better in every aspect of the word. Started off with a cool $50 as i did in FT and have turned it $90 as i write this. The major difference has been ive been playing cash FR games at the 2NL level, which i find sooo much easier then those SnGs on FT. The 2NL is pretty crushable imo, not trying to sound big headed but ive been 6-tabling withouth PT and not ran into any major obstacles. I had a slight downswing the end of last week but recoevered well.

Goals for this month are:

• Take BR up to ~$120 and move to 5NL
• Continue to learn more about the game, online and in literature
• Take down a CC tourney

Whats the fucking point...

Im so fed up with this shit. All fucking day the 4-card flushes , runner runner and bullshit hands calling me down and fucking sucking out... I honestly fucking hate poker, i really dont feel like playing again. $2 Rebuy, played aggresive during rebuy, builing up a slightly above average stack. Go in after add-on and play very tight. Literally i might have seen 2 flops in 30 hands, and only won one pot with a re-raise PF with AK. Get dealt KK and the UTG min raises. Table folds around to me and i 3-bet. UTG re-re-raises me all in (note the terrible play as he only had 200 more chips then me and hes all in with the upcoming shite..). Turns over AJ, maing him a dog. Flop comes up with 2 clubs, all lows, and what should fucking come but 2 more fucking clubs. I mean for fucks sake...i sometimes wonder if sometimes when a tourney is stalling or taking too long FT hurry things up by doing shit like this...

Edit: Long rant, standard i hate poker.. Ive gotten over it now

I love 2NL

Well as i said in my last post i deposited $50 into PS to take advantage of their micro cash games as the FT ones are SOO beyond my BR and the variance was crushing me. Ive only really played the cash games on PS seriously for the last two days, yesterday 4-tabling and today 5-tabling. Made a $20 profit so far, and as far as i can see 2NL is crushable. I know im probably running well but even when im getting shite cards i can still usually break even on teh 2NL tables. Im playing SOOO much better now im withing my BR, ive folded KK for the first time, folded AK's ect and i know im playing at the peak of my game. Unfortuantley i dont have PT or any tracking software so i cant show a graph or multi-table higher (have to actually watch the players) but that will soon change. Im thinking of builing up to ~$100 then move up to 5NL and if i hit 200-300 ill move up again. Really enjoying poker again, moving back into my limits and away from SnGs has had such a positive turn on my poker.

I LOVE 2NL

Ups and downs

Well its been a while since my last post - to be honest ive been quite busy over the weekend. My bastard laptop broke down on friday, its been titering on the edge of life for the last 6 months with the fan and whatnot breaking down, but it hit rock bottom when the wireless radio broke down = no internet. This has resulted in me having to play on my desktop which = no PT, no other poker software ect. And i have to buy a new laptop...

Anyone back to poker. Its been a REAL rough ride the last couple days. My FT account has been shit. Hit a real dry run - started tilting and hit rock bottom when i started throwing money around 'cuz i just dont care anymore..' In general FT was killing my love of poker, so i decided to take a break from it (BR was down to $20 by then), and deposit on PS ($50). I really like the sleek layout of PS, and the super-micro cash games. the 2NL games are a push over so im thinking build up to 60-80$ slowly then move to 5NL until i can hit $200. Thats the plan at least.. Had some good micro games with CCers on PS, always a good laugh especially whent the 7-2 rule came about. Much fun!

Tonight i decided my FT account had to be saved. At $20 i wasnt too sure where to start so i dabbled in some limit razz, stud ect (breaking even) but wasnt really enjoyinh watching the antes suck my profits away. So i decided i was gonna try those fucking SnGs again. Entered a $2 SnG and played TaG untill the bubble burst then played super LAG as i was chip leader. Went to bottom, but managed to pull it around when i hit AA and got no respect for them. Went on to win it, and put some of the profit into a $5 NL SnG, which i also took down. I think the 2 and 5 SnGs are much better for me as the donks are less. Put some of the winnings into a HU2$ game against a absolute maniac = easy money. His strat = push on any pair. Hmm...

BR back up to 45$. In another SnG as i write this, 2$, Just massivley sucked out on the rivver. I had 66 and pushed a shortish stack all in (very laggy player). He shows KQo. Board comes 9QJ, turn Q and the river brings a blessed 6. He didnt take it well, 'fucking idiots and fucking FT always pays them off). Ugh just went to bottom of the pile on the bubble runnnig my AQ into JJ, Two Pair vs set. Must go concentrate

Right , was down to 700 on 50/100 blinds, if we were going on strick M rules i should push ATC, but the table was sooo tight i realised i could steal blinds each orbit until i hit a big hand and doubled up. This worked out, hit AJ, min raised and got pushed in, called and doubled up on A10. The rest of the table then woke up and realised they werent getting a free ride to teh money, so i sat back and watched a guy pratically elimiate himself.

Went ITM as a shortstack, 2ooo, 4000 and 6000. Knocked out in 3rd on this:


Full Tilt Poker Game #6943834758: $2 + $0.25 Sit & Go (52770977), Table 1 - 80/160 - No Limit Hold'em - 18:50:42 ET - 2008/06/23
Seat 1: ajrobinson (3,120)
Seat 6: djmc (4,580)
Seat 9: TheSpaceInvader (5,800)
TheSpaceInvader posts the small blind of 80
ajrobinson posts the big blind of 160
The button is in seat #6
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to ajrobinson [Ac Kc]
djmc folds
TheSpaceInvader raises to 320
ajrobinson raises to 3,120, and is all in
TheSpaceInvader calls 2,800
ajrobinson shows [Ac Kc]
TheSpaceInvader shows [Ad Qs]
*** FLOP *** [6d 2h Th]
*** TURN *** [6d 2h Th] [Ks]
*** RIVER *** [6d 2h Th Ks] [Js]
ajrobinson shows a pair of Kings
TheSpaceInvader shows a straight, Ace high
TheSpaceInvader wins the pot (6,240) with a straight, Ace high
ajrobinson stands up
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 6,240 Rake 0
Board: [6d 2h Th Ks Js]
Seat 1: ajrobinson (big blind) showed [Ac Kc] and lost with a pair of Kings
Seat 6: djmc (button) didn't bet (folded)
Seat 9: TheSpaceInvader (small blind) showed [Ad Qs] and won (6,240) with a straight, Ace high

Runner-runner :(. Ah well, i took it with a smile, which is impressive. Might have this tilt under control.

Not a bad night, the poker gods must have got bored irritating me

Its been a bit of a rollercoaster night. Well not really actually, im lieing. Just like to make it sound dramatic. Its been pretty okay. Ive not really played much, ive played a couple SnGs and placed in as many i feel i need to. The real boost came from these 25FTP sats into the MSOP on FT which if you win can net you $10.40. So i entered a couple, the play is absolutley manic with people moving all in on air (really air) but low and behold i managed to net a win. TBH i sucked out on the last hand to win..but who cares, its time a sucked out for once..Take that you bastards.. BR is at $50ish again, touch wood. Nearly broke BRM rules and entered the CC $5 omaha h/l tourney, but i managed to overcome the urge! Prob enter the one tommorow

I hate poker so much...

Well another bad night last night. After having a serious review of my stats and BR last night i decided i simply wasnt ready to play ring. I know many people say building a BR through SnGs is hard, due to the variance and bad runs ect but im gonna at least try and get my BR up to 200$ through SnGs before i touch ring again.

So with this happy notion in my head i decide to play a few 1$ SnGs (the rakes appaling but i reckon i wont be there long so i should be okay..) I lost 6 straight SnGs without even nearing the bubble. I wasnt playing badly either, the hands which busted me: JJ vs 56s (of course villain has to call 4xbb pf with 56..) , AQo vs A7o (got my money in on the turn with TPGK only to have him spike two pair on the river) , AJ vs QQ (two pair beaten by set) ect ect. The last two SnGs i probably played badly, that monster named tilt raised its ugly head. BR down to 45$ now and im starting to wonder if poker is really the game for me...

A shitty night...

Well a shitty night last night in terms of poker. I was doing okayish, and had about a 2.3bb/100 which wasnt bad. I could have made some big bucks when i made some bad laydowns, i.e. i could have limped K10o on the button to hit two pair but i folded instead..wtf?? I think im playing 10nl as if its 100nl and everyones an amazing player. Ive gotta loosen up a little but keep myself out of trouble when they start betting big. Anyway the night ended with me getting QQ, raised up to .40, got reraised to 1$ so i pushed. It looks bad but the villain had been doing this a lot with AQ, AJ and as low as A10 so i was fairly sure i was ahead. Turns out the villian has AKo making me a 57% favourite. But of course whenever im favourite the flop changes things dramatically as it comes KcJs10d... The turn and river were no help and i got pissed. Laptop nearly went flying , hell the dog sleeping on my lap nearly had to learn to fly.

Must do better tonight...

And so it begins...Introduction

As the title suggests, the blog begins... So i better start with a little about myself. Im 18, a student in Newcastle Uni and a budding poker player. Ive been playing for about 3 months now, and would describe myself somewhere between average and crap. Im still very much learning the game and improving as I do. A major learning tool for me has been CC; I don’t post often, yet read most of the articles and posts from the more experienced players. Im starting this blog as a way to keep a track of my play set myself goals and share my experiences.

So let’s see where I am. Ive made one deposit, $50 into FT. 3 months later (playing on and off) it’s at $60. Not a huge increase but to be honest i thought id lose my whole first deposit. Ive got a pretty good tournament / SnG game, and am using the profit of that to learn the ring game the hard way by experience. My PT3 database got corrupted and had to be reinstalled the other week so there’s not much data there but ill show what ive got:

As said my tournament and SnG game is pretty okay and keeps me afloat while learning the ring game (the flat bits are where im using FTP's to enter tourneys):

My cash game is…well lets just say not as good? Well tbh its pretty dire but improving...

And the problem is clearly my 6-max.

I also have a serious tilt issue. One bad beat and im okay, the second and im a little pissed, and then if a third hits its donk time. Gotta cut that out!

So thats pretty much me, where im at ect..

So my aims for the next month:

· Don’t ever touch 6-max (Ever....ever..)

· Continue to build my BR through ring games, hit $100

· Stop tilting and donking off money

· Contribute more to CC where and when I can